Amy Scott

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I'm Amy Scott.

New home sales picked up in the fall, according to delayed data out today from the Census Bureau, which is still catching up from that government shutdown.

Sales in October were up more than 18 percent from the same time last year.

And if recent trends hold up, many of those new homes may be smaller than in the past.

The median size of a newly built single-family home has been shrinking.

And as Michael Koren wrote about recently in the Washington Post's Climate Coach column, that may be a good thing.

Michael, welcome to the program.

Happy to be here.

Thank you.

What got you started on this topic of square footage as it relates to happiness?

Well, my friend, Jay, actually, she was in New York City and had raised her family in a sub-600 square foot apartment.

And she loved it.

And she said there were trade-offs, but I was intrigued by this idea of how she could raise a family in such a small space and feel like this was the best idea she's ever had.

I live in one, too, and so maybe this is a bit selfish.

Well, what did you learn about whether bigger houses lead to happier lives?